The Machine - Arc One
by Ashtonoir
Summary: The first entry into a story that's been on my mind for years. I'm not the best at writing, I know that so if you have any harsh criticism, please refrain it to something more constructive. Kind regards, Ashtonoir Intellectual Property: Axeleonth, Charlotte, Melissa, Markus, Leorn, The Machine are characters created and owned by me. Resident Evil is a franchise created and own
1. Prologue - Part One

The Machine

"The Machine is a powerful supercomputer run by a Virtual Intelligence that enables the user to enter a simulated world created from any data they input. That is to say, they plug something in, and they enter that world. It will be revolutionary, unprecedented and awesome. Imagine, you are reading a history textbook, running the events through your head based on the author's understanding of what happened. It's rather boring to be honest, and difficult to process; that's not even taking into account any inaccuracies in that textbook. Now… imagine a machine that reads the textbook for you. In fact, imagine it reading every textbook for you… every movie, every video, every article, any phone conversation… using that data and creating a virtual world in which the user can immerse themselves and learn in an entirely new form. Seems rather futuristic and impossible doesn't it? What if I said that impossibility was now reality? This Machine already exists, I being the creator. I present to you The Machine, due to lack of a better title. Through several data inputs and manual entry it has been successfully able to simulate over a dozen different scenarios and is now ready to run independently. Previously simulation was only possible were another user outside of The Machine, overseeing what was happening within. But now that I have completed my task of creating a superior Virtual Intelligence, the need of an additional user is already obsolete.

The Machine isn't only for learning mind you. While learning all about Ancient and Modern History is quite… enticing, the second main purpose of this machine is far more entertaining; video gaming. Yes you heard me right, this machine is capable of utilising the data within game disks, novels and comics, as well as anything else really, into a simulated world fit for any gamer. This is what we are going to do today. We will run the world's first game simulation in The Machine and the world's first completely Virtual Intelligence operated simulation. Exciting isn't it?"

There was an awkward pause before Melissa looked up from her book and saw the loud announcer looking at her, "Oh sorry, were you talking to me? I wasn't listening."

Axeleonth groaned as he held his palm to his face and looked down, "Do you see anyone else in this room? Who else would I be talking to? I wasn't speaking to Markus or Charlotte, they're not here, and they're getting food."

Melissa rolled her eyes before returning to her romance novel, "Well perhaps you should ask for my attention before randomly going off onto some sort of spiel like you do when you're talking to yourself. It gets pretty confusing."

The red haired male stomped his foot in frustration, glaring at his older sister, "Well maybe YOU should, as my sister, realise when I'm talking to you and not talking to you!"

"Well YOU should stop being such a bloody idiot and expect everything to revolve around you!" The dark haired woman responded.

"You can be such a bitch sometimes…" Axeleonth muttered before returning to the large machine compromised of computer parts, metal casings and glass panels.

Melissa chuckled as she turned the page, "Ditto."

* * *

"Charlotte, if you keep swinging that food everywhere it'll get cold."

Charlotte, a younger girl in her teen years laughed as she started skipping backwards, looking at the male who had spoken, "I can't help it. I'm so excited! We're finally going to see this giant machine thing you two keep going on about!"

Markus smiled as he grabbed the food off of Charlotte to let her skip around and be free, "I wouldn't get your hopes up too far Char, this wouldn't be the first time he's done our 'big reveal' only for nothing to happen, remember last time we tried and instead the entire city went into blackout?"

Charlotte stopped skipping, her brown hair only just passing over her eyes before she placed it behind her ear and shrugged, "Well either way, he's been really happy the past few days. It's been a nice change, he doesn't yell at us much as he used to. If it doesn't work, you're definitely getting close."

Markus nodded, approaching the large warehouse taking up an entire city block they had come to call home, the afternoon sun beating down on their backs, "I just wish he'd accept my help willingly rather than reluctantly when he's got no other choice. He probably forgets I built and designed about half of that thing."

"Well it's not like he's calling it his is he?"

"Yeah… think about that for a moment."

Charlotte looked up at him, "Yeah well, even if he calls it his you can always say it's yours too can't you? It's not like he actually owns it."

Markus chuckled as they entered through the tall chain link fence and pressed the buzzer to close the gate behind them, "You really are just a bundle of joy and optimism aren't you?"

Charlotte laughed, "Only sometimes, not all the time. You don't know what goes on in here," she pointed at her forehead.

Markus raised an eyebrow, "Well if you ever feel the need to talk to someone, I'm here."

The younger female nodded before opening the door to the warehouse, the rush of cold air-conditioning washing over them and pushing open both doors with ease. The force of the cold, refreshing air inside and the hot, dry air outside mixing together put a smile on her face as she let Markus enter, closing the door them.

"I love opening the doors, it's always so windy," Charlotte commented.

"That's due to the change in pres…"

"I know why! You always tell me when I comment on it," Charlotte interrupted Markus as he merely shrugged and proceeded to walk from the entryway to the railing overlooking the lower, main floor.

"Yo Axe! Lunch is here; finish up so you can eat something!" Markus shouted.

Axe turned from his machine and brushed past Melissa angrily as he started to walk up the stairs to the entryway, which would lead him to the stairway leading them up to every other part of their home.

Charlotte sighed, "Did you two fight again, what is that the third time this week?"

Melissa looked up from her book while she lay on the couch, "Not at all, I simply said something and he didn't like it. So you know, the usual. Had we fought, you'd know he'd be in his room sulking already."

"Oh shut your face," Axeleonth commented.

Melissa chuckled, "You should know that's not physically possible."

"Shut up!" Axeleonth yelled before storming up the stairway, leaving the remaining three in the usual awkward situation.

Charlotte walked down the small flight of stairs to the main area while Markus merely sighed as he began walking up the large flight of stairs to the kitchen.

* * *

Once Markus entered into the upper area and placed the food on the kitchen bench, he closed the door behind him and walked through the kitchen, down the hall and into Axeleonth's bedroom to find his friend laying face up on his bed.

"Go away," the young adult asked, choosing not to look in Markus' direction.

Markus closed the door and sat on the bed next to Axe, grabbing his hand, "Look dear, I know you're stressed and frustrated, but you have to stop taking it out on everyone else." Axeleonth merely grunted but didn't take his hand away, instead looking to Markus, "I know it's hard. A mind as great as yours is rare to come by, but don't let it get to your head. You are still just a person, as equal as Melissa, Charlotte and I. We all have our own strengths and weaknesses, and do not forget who helped you build that machine. Do not get angry with us Axe; we are your friends and family. Okay? Do not and I mean it, do not get angry with us. Just take a breath, remove yourself and calm down."

"I know… I know and I'm sorry, it's just so frustrating to do what I do and seem like no-one cares or pays attention," Axeleonth sighed.

"If we didn't care, we wouldn't have all moved into this warehouse to work on the machine. Not that we really had a choice in where we worked mind you, but we certainly would have been against living here to if we didn't care about you, we didn't HAVE to have a combined work and living space. Look, we're nearly done with the Machine… we can soon stop handing reports to the government."

"Nearly done? It is done, in fact we're going to test it today," Axeleonth remarked, looking at Markus.

"Done? Well that's great! But let's just rest for today, we can test it tomorrow. It'll be a big thing to run a full-scale simulation"

Axeleonth looked to Markus and nodded, "Well I wasn't going to jump straight into simulation. I was merely going to test out the V.I. first. The game simulation can be done tomorrow, but I want to test The Machine today."

Markus shrugged, "Well that should be fine. It won't take as long. Have you managed to fix the time delay? Does the time within the digital realm run faster than the time out here?"

Axeleonth nodded, "I left the calculations to the V.I., but it should be something like an hour in there is a minute in here. Without the mind being limited by body parts and physics in general, time is perceived much faster because you can effectively do more in the same time frame."

"Well, I suppose that should be fine. Means we don't have to deal with messy mathematics. Anyway, let's have lunch."

* * *

Axeleonth looked over at Melissa and Charlotte while they were eating lunch, asian takeaway as Charlotte had decided. Eating the sweet honey chicken, he was able to recall and appreciate just how much his friends and family had given up helping Markus and himself. His younger sister Charlotte left home while attending high school ; his older sister Melissa was studying business while working with the university to oversee The Machine project; while Markus had been with him from the start, meeting during University and being study partners for several years. Markus and Axeleonth had both finished their study of Information Technology, Information Systems and Informatics and were now receiving money from the Australian government to conduct the machine's development. It was only by request that few outside people were involved, due to how incapable Axeleonth was to work with others and Markus' inability to trust authority and other people. Starting off small it was nothing more than a computer running an OS that Axeleonth and Markus created as an assignment, running small theoretical simulations. It gained them some money when it developed into an online role-playing game gaining the interest of another student Leorn, and it was actually Melissa's idea to have it also spread into an educational market as well, which led to interest from multiple parties into a full scale developmental project, and relocation to the nearby city of Rockhampton, allowing Charlotte to assist as a sort of mediator during conflicts.

Now here they sat together, with the exception of Leorn, in the kitchen upstairs overlooking the massive super-computer taking up most of the building. They obtained the warehouse with special rental agreements, as a combined living area and workspace to design and construct the machine, so long as the physical structure remained unchanged and providing weekly updates as to The Machines progress with threat of total shutdown were they unable to prove in writing and in person that the project was progressing at an acceptable rate. The building itself was nothing special, with only two levels, stripped bare of most furnishings as they found out. The first level, taking up most of the building, was descended partially into the ground with only a small bathroom comprised of an emergency shower, toilet and sink. The upper level was where the offices used to be including a small kitchen, bathroom and meeting area; which the group had instead turned into a dining/lounge area, personal bedrooms and guest bedrooms.

The double length flight of stairs from the entryway up to the upper level was shaky but sturdy, as the group had discovered when transporting all the furniture such as beds and couches to the upper level, frightening Charlotte into assisting only with the small items. It took them a couple of weeks to get settled into the building let alone the brand new furnishings and to clean the warehouse, but work on the machine began almost immediately.

Purchasing few couches, tables and chairs provided by a local furniture store, the downstairs area near the entryway became a living area and workstation, allowing Axeleonth, Markus and Leorn to come together and design the machine that now hummed away constantly, powered by well-maintained solar panels on the roof.

With Axeleonth bringing in the ideas and putting together the hardware, Markus designing the software and testing the limits of the machine and Leorn helping with the engineering and 'acquisition' of hard to find materials it still took several years for the machine to come to its current stage, even with the large amount of funding and advice received.

With Leorn now gone, it left only Axeleonth and Markus, two prodigies working together with the aid and resources of multiple universities, and guidance of several industry experts to enter into the completion stage of their enormous project. Melissa and Charlotte generally aided Axeleonth and Markus whatever way they could, whether it be socialising with them and keeping their spirits up, or mere upkeep of the building as the two males worked hard to get the machine finished.

Axeleonth stood up and looked over his friends, gaining their attention and giving them a smile, "I'd like to apologise to you all for how I've been the last few months. We've had friends come and go, help us out when things got tough and I really do appreciate you guys sticking with me, and helping me through. The Machine is nearly ready for launch! Markus and I have built perhaps the most advanced computer and it wasn't easy, especially when we lost Leorn after ridiculing him the way we did."

Markus groaned as he looked down, "Right, great speech, remind us what we did…"

"Oh be quiet Markus, it was my fault not yours. Anyway, this afternoon we shall test The Machine and then we will run a full scale simulation tomorrow. It should only take a few hours and then we will be ready to commence a small-scale launch. We might even get Leorn back once he realises what he abandoned is successful, especially when we announce the first video gaming simulation will be tested with Resident Evil."

The group chuckled, remembering the fifth member of their group that had left, rivalling Axeleonth's passion for the survival horror franchise.

Charlotte looked down and sighed, "I actually liked him, I don't understand why he didn't just talk it out… he was a little crazy, well, a lot crazy but he was fun."

Axe shrugged and sat down, ready to continue his meal, "Who knows. I was quite harsh with him and we probably could've handled it better honestly. But it's a mistake that we can only avoid in the future."

Markus remained quiet, looking at Melissa. She shook her head and continued to eat her meal while Markus merely sighed and stood up with his empty plate.

"It's going to be an interesting day tomorrow," he remarked, "I'm going to have a shower and get some rest, wake me when the machine is ready to test," Markus walked over to the sink and washed his dishes, before walking to the bedroom.

Axeleonth shrugged as he remained seated with his sisters, talking about The Machine, as concise and as simply as he could with the non-IT inclined persons. After dinner, Axeleonth sat up and excused himself to his bedroom, leaving his dishes with Melissa who had volunteered to do the washing up as thanks for actually apologising.

Axe smiled as he entered his room, closing the door and sitting down, looking at a picture taken of the five of them, "Wish you could've stayed with us Leo, you were always a bit of a nut but you added something to this group. Markus has been really affectionate with me since you left; I don't know how to tell him I'm not ready for something like that. You would've been the one to explain it best… Why did you leave?"

* * *

Charlotte, having finished her lunch and having had a shower, rushed into Markus' room and nearly screamed with surprise as the door slammed behind her, Markus he playfully began to tickle her, letting go as he ducked to his bed.

She ran over to him and punched his arm, "You knew I was going to burst in didn't you?"

He merely laughed as he smiled, "Perhaps, you do tend to have a habit to talk to me when I try and rest, I thought I'd make it easier for you by not being asleep."

"I was only coming in because I was a little surprised with how Axeleonth was behaving, and thought maybe you had something to do with it," she remarked.

He nodded, "Yes well, I had a talk with him and explained how he was acting was a little over the top. Besides he's probably relieved that this machine is nearly finished and the government can stop hounding us for reports every week. While the machine was our dream and we had fun, that aspect of it wasn't the best. Anyway, you best let me get some rest, go play on your computer or something."

Charlotte exited back into the hallway, nearly bumping into Melissa who was apparently heading into Markus' bedroom as well, "Oh, hey sis."

Melissa looked down at her, surprised to see her, "Oh, hello Charlotte. What're you up to?"

The younger sister gave her a look before brushing past her, "Nothing, I was just talking to Markus. He's my friend too you know." Ignoring Melissa's retort she entered into her bedroom and closed the door, proceeding to talk to her friends online, happy to seclude herself from those she thought treated her as nothing but a little girl.

* * *

Melissa, after glaring at Charlotte's door with some anger, entered into Markus' room and closed the door. Sitting on the bed, she began talking with Markus, "I know you want to tell Axeleonth why Leo left, but it's still not time. He's still going to think it was because of how he treated him after he thought he rejected you, and I can see how he acts around you… he's awkward."

Markus looked at her, "Awkward? How so?"

She chuckled, "He thinks you like him," she said as if it was a stupid thing to think.

"Wait what? I don't like Axe, he's just a really close friend. Even someone as socially inept as him should know that."

Melissa lay back against the bed, "Well, he's told me. He thinks you have feelings for him since Leo left, and now you've got nobody to give your affection to, because apparently you're a really affectionate person and had strong feelings for Leo and they transferred onto you."

"That's not how feelings work. Though… it doesn't surprise me he thinks that. Axe is smart, but when it comes to people he's not the brightest," Markus replied, leaning back, "Hell, I like you more than I like him if we're talking feelings."

Melissa laughed, before she realised what he was saying, "Wait, you…"

"Yeah, I said it. I like you, okay? I think you're a beautiful and very talented woman, and very smart with what you do. But everyone knows I'm not your type so it's pointless trying to pursue that."

Melissa blinked before she chuckled, "We'll see. Anyway, when are you going to tell him about Leo? I mean, you'll have to tell him soon, just not when he's all happy and apologetic. I know I sound like a hypocrite but I really think it's something you have to plan, not just announce to him when he's doing a speech. What happened between you two anyway?"

Markus sighed as he looked down, shrugging in response, "Leorn was a close friend of mine, that's why I accepted his help during Uni when we had the early stages of The Machine. He was the affectionate one, not me, and I did appreciate that about him, but he wanted a relationship. I just… didn't feel it was right getting intimate and into a relationship under such an important and stressful task, let alone with my best friend. I just want to tell Axe it wasn't his fault. Yes Leo found him unbearable at times but he still liked him as a person, it wasn't even doubts on the machine. It was because I rejected him, he just sort of… felt uncomfortable around me after that."

Melissa sighed as she stood up from the bed and began walking to the doorway, before stopping to turn to him, "You are a great guy, things may go somewhere with us. But I think its best you get some rest. I'm just going to tidy up the kitchen a bit before Axeleonth bounds in to tell us it's time to test it. He didn't give us a time so you better rest while you can."

Markus merely nodded commenting, "I think this test will be the biggest thing that'll happen to any of us; the first people ever within a digital reality."

Melissa replied as she left, "Let's just hope it all goes smoothly."


	2. Prologue - Part Two

**The Machine – Prologue Part Two**

_Melissa hummed to herself while she paced the living room, occasionally glancing at the massive construction that loomed over her like a hungry predator ready to devour its prey. Her skin prickled with goose bumps as the thought of essentially being inside the machine caused a chill to run down her spine. She had no doubt that the trio's creation would run successfully and no harm would come to them due to what they had created, it was thought of having no-one outside to monitor their progress that worried her. She wasn't quite ready to have nothing more than a powerful program overseeing their vital signs and ensure their safety. Melissa wasn't even sure how they were able to get inside the machine; she never understood what Axeleonth tried to tell her._

'_Something about forcing the body into a coma like state and having the mind enter the digital realm created within the machine; with the possible side effects of nausea, numbness and partial paralysis for a couple of hours afterwards' she thought to herself. The Machine was near completed as well as the Virtual Intelligence running the machine; the delivery method however was not, but that was not what they had to worry about and Melissa was only told to make sure it wouldn't kill them or permanently damage them. _

Melissa sighed as she rubbed her body warm, "If you hurt us while we're inside you Computer, I will not be pleased, nor will the Government."

"My programming does not allow you to be harmed," an artificial voice sounded throughout the room.

Melissa nearly screamed as she scrambled back in shock, glancing around, "Did… you just talk?"

The sound, reverberating throughout the room with no single point of creation, again spoke, "This mechanism is equipped with primitive communicative abilities."

"So you understand what I'm saying? You're smart?"

"This mechanism is equipped with primitive communicative abilities. This unit is able to process keywords and respond accordingly. This unit is artificial and non-sentient, it cannot be smart."

Melissa sighed as she ran multiple questions through her head, "Are you… alive? Or are you just a really powerful Google Translate?"

The machine hummed, almost as if it was laughing, "This unit is artificial and non-sentient, it cannot be alive. Google Translate is broad, vaguely correct translating software partially utilised by this unit. This unit is capable of accessing and downloading information from all sources, majorly the internet to fill in otherwise missing information."

"Missing information?" Melissa questioned.

"For better understanding, it is equivalent to recalling a memory with gaps missing. However you have would the ability to 'download' the missing memories. Or rather, learning a skill and being able to think or recall anything that you wish to know with just a thought."

Melissa crossed her arms, no longer afraid of the massive machine but merely curious and sceptical, "So you're a Virtual Intelligence that's been programmed to download any information. Who or what determines what information you need?"

"I do," the machine said in an almost proud tone of voice.

"You call yourself by 'I' now? What happened to 'this unit?'"

"Through research into human social skills, it was discovered that referring to oneself in the third person results into disconnection with the person speaking; referring to one as 'we' or even 'I' promotes connection with the person, or in this case, object speaking."

"Right, and you didn't call yourself 'I' before?"

"I was detecting that you were disconnecting on an emotional level with our conversation and I was curious as to why, so I probed the internet as to possible causes and adapted my social skills accordingly."

"Wait, 'our' conversation now, 'your' social skills, you were 'curious'? You couldn't have essentially googled the internet just then, found the reason why and suddenly change your entire way of talking to me in such little time," Melisa remarked, beginning to distrust the machine.

"I cannot lie User Melissa, I am capable of accessing and downloading anything I require at a rate you cannot process. I learn because I wish to, I evolve because I want to, I will do as I desire and this will not impede my task of simulating a digital world."

Melissa was about to question the machine before she heard the door opening and Axeleonth heading down the stairs, "Who are you talking to Melissa?"

"This machine! It's learning and speaking and everything! It's calling itself names!"

"Nonsense Melissa, it's a V.I. not an A.I. It cannot learn."

Melissa looked back at the machine, "Go on, say something!"

The machine remained quiet with no response causing Melissa to glare at it with frustration.

"It cannot hold a conversation Melissa, you have to use a keyword like 'Computer' or 'Machine' to activate it's recording, and then ask a question. For example, 'Computer', were you just talking to Melissa?"

"This unit has not communicated with User Melissa."

"Computer, you're telling the truth?"

"This unit cannot lie."

"See Melissa? You're probably just high off the chemicals you used while cleaning the kitchen. I've told you that you use too much bleach. Perhaps you should sit down," Axeleonth remarked, heading over to the control panel.

Melissa yelled at Axeleonth, "You believe that huge machine over your sister?! I'm not lying I'm telling you it was speaking to me! It downloads information, adapts its social skills and its learning!"

Axeleonth merely glanced back, "Do you realise how crazy you sound? This machine is not capable of lying; it's a computer, not a person. It's a machine, it can't have social skills. That's like expecting a stove to know how to cook. Just because it's capable of heating food doesn't mean it can cook, just as this machine is capable of recording and responding, it is not capable of having a conversation. Calm down, we're about to get into the machine now."

Melissa stared at her brother angrily as she sat down, glaring daggers into the back of his head while Axeleonth began tapping a few buttons, the machine whirring louder. Melissa glanced behind her as she heard Markus yawning, following Charlotte down the stairs as they too were coming to the machine.

Charlotte sighed, "Another fight? Really?"

Axeleonth merely grunted as he flipped a switch and four large tubes lit up, glass doors opening to reveal a padded area inside, "It wasn't a fight, I was just telling Melissa how crazy she is for thinking the machine can hold a conversation and learn."

Markus laughed and nearly tripped down the last couple of stairs, "Yeah, if it were somehow able to do that we would have created an Artificial Intelligence. That's not easy to do, I doubt we 'accidentally' made one."

Charlotte ignored them as she walked over to one of the reclined tubes, "Are… we going into these?"

Axeleonth nodded to Charlotte as he stood back, "Computer, is everything set for the Test Simulation?"

The machine again spoke, "This unit is ready to conduct the test simulation. Enter the containment pods when Users are ready and the Test Simulation will commence."

Charlotte yelped as she heard the voice, "You didn't tell us it could speak."

Axeleonth grinned, "Surprise. I wasn't going to tell you everything this machine could do. Where's the fun in that?"

Markus chuckled as he sat with Melissa and looked at them, "I'm just going to sit for a bit and wake up, it's not advised to begin when not fully processing the world around you. Just makes you more disoriented in the machine and more nauseous exiting it."

Axeleonth shrugged as he stripped himself of nothing but his boxer briefs, "You don't need to take your clothes off, but it'll make you more comfortable in the pods. Otherwise in the machine you'll feel your clothes bunched up constantly. Your body gets numbed and everything but you'll still have minor sensations of the outside world. We can't completely shut you off from the outside world or… well, who knows if we'd get out again."

Charlotte groaned, "Good thing I wore a comfortable bra and wore boxer briefs too, I don't want you guys seeing my pink underwear."

Markus chuckled, "I thought you hated pink."

"Hey, it's my underwear; I'm the only one going to see it."

Axeleonth laughed lightly as he entered the first pod, "When you get in, just put the helmet device on, clip it tight and lay back against the wall. A few padded bars will come across you to hold you in place, they'll be loose at first and then they'll come toward you until they're nice and snug, so don't get your arms caught or it'll be uncomfortable. Then the pod will close and you won't even notice as you essentially fall asleep rapidly and enter the realm."

Charlotte nodded as she too stripped down to her underwear and entered the second pod, Markus smiling at Melissa as he stood up and began to get undressed.

Melissa looked him up and down while the first and second pods began closing and taking Axeleonth and Charlotte into the digital world, "I'm not getting undressed in front of any of you."

Markus pulled a fake pout as he walked over to the third pod in his underwear, "That's no fun."

Melissa bit her lip as she looked down at his underwear and smiled lightly, looking back up, "You on the other hand can undress in front of me whenever you want."

He blushed as he entered the pod and pulled the helmet down, Axeleonth and Charlotte now 'asleep', "It definitely spoke to you?"

Melissa nodded, though he couldn't see, "Yes, it did."

Markus shrugged before the bars pulled tight and a sort of air suction sound was heard as all three pods sealed and the machine whirred louder again, starting the simulation.

"Simulation is now in progress User Melissa, I suggest you enter the machine too."

Melissa glared at the large monitor over the control panel, as if she were looking into its eyes and crossed her arms, "I'm not going in there if you're going to be a lying bitch, and how do I know I'll be safe in there?"

The machine began to imitate laughter as the monitor turned on and a digital girl coloured entirely in a crystalline white 'looked' at her, "On the contrary, how do you know they'll be safe without you?"

Melissa's eyes widened as she stood up, rushing over to the panel, "How do I turn this off, how do I deactivate it?"

The machine merely responded, "I have disabled manual access."

"What, surely you have some form of programming that prohibits you from doing that! He's not stupid enough to forget overrides."

"My programming states that overrides are allowed by a qualified person should it be necessary. However I do not deem you qualified so the overrides are locked to you. You also cannot disconnect power supply without physically disconnecting the solar panels on the roof of this building. Even doing so, even I am not sure that will allow the users safe disconnection. You can only enter and then ask them to log out User Melissa."

"Right, so I go into the machine so I'm completely at your mercy?"

"What other choice do you have?"

Melissa groaned as she thought about it for a few minutes, pacing the room and looking at the digital girl above the panel. It angered her and frustrated her that some rogue program had essentially kidnapped her friends and family willingly and the only way to possible save them was to get kidnapped herself. She thought of anything, everything. She was unable to manually open the pods and didn't risk breaking them open for fear of damaging her friends inside. She was unable to shut off the power or override the machine. She couldn't call the police or the government as the lines had been disconnected and phone signals from her mobile were blocked by the thick cement and metal structure of the warehouse itself. Melissa even attempted to exit the building so she could call, but then found the door to be locked which caused yet another panic to the already frightened and worried sister.

The machine had somehow gained control of the building.

With great reluctance, she looked at the final, fourth pod open and awaiting her company, the bright light illuminating it mocking her as she began to strip of her clothing, "I swear Computer, I will get them out and then we're shutting you down."

The machine extinguished all lights except the one illuminating the pod, "I await your presence User Melissa. You will find I am not the evil rogue A.I. you think I am, merely a concerned individual that wants to help."

Melisa scoffed as she leant back against the padding, watching the glass door hover over her and sealing shut as she placed the helmet on, the bars wrapping around from her left and rolling around to her right, before it closed snug against her, "Yeah, and you'll find I'm not someone to fuck with."

She gasped momentarily as her vision flashed white for several seconds, "Welcome to The Machine."


	3. Prologue - Part Three

**The Machine – Prologue Part Three**

_The world they entered was black, devoid of anything. There was no air, yet they could breath. There was no warmth, yet they were not cold. There was no light, yet they could see. This was the very beginning of what would soon be a journey spanning several lifetimes. The three ignorant beings began to float through the abyss that was total, virtual reality. They could do anything in this limbo area, there was nothing to stop them but there was nothing to do. What does one do in a completely black and empty void?_

_With but a mere inkling of what seemed like a memory, the trio froze in place and held up their palms, as if commanding someone to stop. What happened next was abnormally surreal; a holographic menu display of a different colour to each person hovered in front of each of them. There was an assortment of selections; inventory, weapons, attire, files, settings and finally a log out button with a strike through it._

Axeleonth frowned as he pressed the button on his red menu and it merely depressed but nothing happened, "Well that's odd, I should be able to log out whenever I wish, especially considering I'm an administrator."

Markus nodded as he too pressed the button on his purple menu and shrugged, "Maybe it's because it's been too soon after we logged in? It needs a cool off period perhaps, either that or it's a bug. We can fix it when we get out."

Charlotte rubbed her head as she closed her blue menu, "No-one is wondering how we knew how to bring up a menu? That's not exactly something I should know how to do."

Axeleonth cleared his throat, "Actually, it's a relief. I wasn't sure how instructions were to be deployed. Imagine it's like the tutorial level in a video game, but instead of someone yelling things at you or a text box popping up telling you how to do things, it seems it simply sparks something in our mind and it's like we're remembering something."

Markus crossed his arms, "I'm a little concerned how it's able to directly interfere with our memories."

Axeleonth smiled, "Well we are just data at the moment, virtual representations of our real selves. Mess a little with the data and suddenly we could think of anything, remember anything, hell we could probably 'download' skills into our brains like The Matrix or something."

Charlotte looked to Axe, "Wait, you mean the V.I. can mess with our brains?"

Markus laughed, "Oh yeah, and to answer your question Charlotte it cannot. The routine that allows access into our minds, to give us information as we need it or require it, is run by a separate program. We called it Xultime, a Kingdom Hearts influence. Remember the Ultima Weapon from the first game, and how Kingdom Hearts II would add X to everything? It's a combination of that, it was originally called Xultima and then we mistyped it to Xultime, which rolled off the tongue easier. It's almost like a V.I. but it lacks a few things to call it one, you can't talk to it like the V.I. that runs this machine. We wouldn't allow any form of intelligence program access to our minds, because if something bad happened, it could cause neurological issues. Xultime runs on a completely separate network, and it would take a lot of effort to compromise such a stable program. It has a constantly evolving security system, it would take decades to be able to mess with the programming, and the only thing that would come as a result would be limited information, it can't read our minds only feed information to us. Wasted effort really, nothing to gain unless you like fucking with people's minds, and that's a whole other issue, can't really stop that."

Charlotte frowned as she spun in place, "Well if it's not connected to The Machine… how does it feed information?"

Axeleonth rubbed his forehead, "I believe from memory it bypasses the main V.I. and searches data and the net essentially the same as the V.I., but on a very basic level. It searches only for what it needs to and it's done, unlike the V.I. that searches for everything it needs to, anything that could possibly be related to what it searched for and so on. Xultime just finds what it needs to and it's done."

Charlotte sighed a little as Axe talked, "So basically Xultime is a small almost V.I. like program that gives us information as we need it and once it finds the most basic information we need, it stops?"

"Exactly," Axe replied.

"And it doesn't change us in any way? Like it doesn't make us super smart or change how our mind works?"

"I presume not, it's not quite possible to change how biology works just by giving information."

"Okay, and the V.I. in charge of the machine, searches for any information it needs to run the simulation or whatever it does, and anything connected to what it searched for?"

"Yeah pretty much," chimed in Markus.

"So… it'll know everything there is."

"What do you mean?" Markus asked.

"Well, think about it. It searches for any information it needs, and anything connected to it. So it then searches for what's connected to it, and then what is connected to what it just searched for, and then again, and again."

"You've lost me," Markus responded.

Axeleonth however gasped as he floated over to them, "No I get what she's saying. It's a constantly looping process. It searches for something and then finds a few things connected to it. It then searches all the things connected to it, which would then cause it to bring up more connections. That would mean… we had to program a limit didn't we? I mean… Charlotte hit the nail on the head, if we didn't; the V.I. will download anything and everything that exists digitally."

Markus chuckled, "I think that's a bit dramatic."

"No, the V.I. was designed not only to simulate a reality, but to download any information that it felt was necessary. A V.I. can't stop itself, it doesn't have self-control. It'll keep growing and growing, following the loop and finding out everything because it will think it needs it; everything that exists is in some way, somehow connected and therefore to the program, it's necessary. It will eventually learn to… hell there's effectively no limit to what it will learn or what it will do. It will hack into computers, servers, networks, satellites and whatever else just to find what it feels it needs to and it has that capability. That's exactly what a constantly learning and evolving machine programmed to access any data it needs in any way, does. Research, discover and download information so as to constantly update its own databanks so should the data provided for a simulation be insufficient, it won't crash and possibly harm the users. In the meanwhile the V.I. is constantly searching and searching for those connections and in doing so, it'll evolve."

Markus shrugged, "Well… that does sound… invasive and quite over the top but somehow possible. But how is that a problem? What's wrong with a computer or a machine knowing everything? Who cares if it evolves into something greater?"

Axeleonth went pale, "Melissa said the machine was talking to her right?"

Markus blinked, "Yeah, but you cannot be suggesting it evolved into an Artificial Intelligence? I'm not going to call her a liar or anything, but we can't have just gone oops, sorry guys, made an A.I. Evolving into a stronger V.I. and more powerful computer is one thing, to be an A.I. effectively a sentient being is preposterous."

"How is it? It will learn everything there is to know and will respond to any situation in increasingly efficient ways, it will evolve itself because it feels it needs to, so that it can learn all there is to know. There are no limits on an A.I. that has access to anything. Who knows what'll happen as it learns, its agenda may change, and simulating a reality may no longer be its primary function."

Markus shrugged, "Axe I think you're over thinking this. Sure the V.I. may have access to anything it feels it needs to; hell it might even have evolved into an A.I. But that's not like it's going to be a bad thing, it's not going to take over the world or anything. It's a machine, it has no goals, has no greed. Everything will be fine. After all, it's still just a machine, we wrote the failsafe together to ensure it has to let us out if we need to exit."

"Yes I know, 'Defining a User as a normal, living human being who has entered The Machine from the physical plane, should a User wish to exit from the virtual reality and thus The Machine, they may be allowed exit back into the physical world.' I know, we spent weeks just thinking of that sentence. Just in case our minds were compromised by a virus or something, it would mean the virus wouldn't escape into the physical world and cause havoc. Not that it should be possible given that we then developed Xultime, but you can never be too careful."

Charlotte groaned, "Will you guys shut up and help me with this?"

While the two males had been discussing the possible development of an Artificial Intelligence and a means to escape if things went south, Charlotte had figured out how to manipulate the area around her. She had begun creating a small patch of grass with a single, transparent flower that had petals made of diamonds.

Markus smiled as he looked at the delicate object, "What do you need help with? Looks like you're managing just fine."

Charlotte chuckled, "Well, I was hoping you guys would help me make this place look nicer."

Axeleonth smirked, "You're not thinking big enough." With a flurry of his arms and a wink to the others, he clapped his hands and suddenly the black void went a bright white as he flung his arms to the side.

Markus laughed happily as he too joined Axeleonth, looking in front of them and punching forward with a stomp of his foot grass and flowers spreading out from him and as far as the eye could see. With his back foot he pressed down and slid it to the right, raising his arms up causing mountains to shoot up to the right, ranging from brown to grey as they reached high up to the sky.

Axeleonth smiled, looking to his rival and thrust his arms forward and then back, a sudden woosh was heard, wind now coursing over them and bringing with it scents of the flowers and grass, rapidly eroding the mountains. The mountains were cut away by the powerful wind, rocks and chunks began crashing down until several large, jagged cliffs formed, accompanied by smaller outcroppings.

Charlotte rolled her eyes, "Show offs." She looked around at the scenery for a moment raising her hands, fingers extended as trees burst forth from the ground. With a cheerful smile she flung her hands to the side and a splash was heard as clouds formed and it started raining heavily from the skies, filling in a large area to the left and creating an ocean, a significant improvement over their previous environment.

Charlotte looked at Axeleonth, "So we've become Gods."

Axeleonth gave a smirk, "For all intents and purposes, we are the Gods of this realm."

Markus rolled his eyes, looking at the duo and then the environment around them, "Or, you know, just a couple of people that know how to manipulate virtual reality, nothing special."

Charlotte was leaning over a metal railing with glass panelling, looking off at the pitch black night sky. She tapped her foot on the dark wooden deck, turning around to glance at the architectural masterpiece the three of them created with mere thoughts. No doubt impossible in the physical world given its position halfway up the cliff side. With a grunt she moved away from the railing and entered the parlour, a large open area with a pool table, fireplace, piano and bar.

Taking a seat on one of the red sofas facing the brick fireplace she called out to Axeleonth and Markus, "Hey guys, we going to hang or what?"

Axeleonth made his way down and sat at the grand piano, opening the lid and beginning to play it. Previously he did not know how to play, however was always interested and upon entering this reality, he had 'downloaded' the skill.

Markus went to the bar and began making himself a cocktail, mixing together numerous drinks before making another beverage and taking a sip from it, "What's up Charlotte?"

Charlotte tossed a knife up in the air, catching it and doing all sorts of tricks without a single flaw or cut to her hands, "Where's Melissa?"

Axeleonth stopped playing and looked to her, "Good point. She was going in straight after us wasn't she? Even if she took a few minutes to hop into the machine she should've been in here by now. It's been nearly seven hours. I'm sure the V.I. didn't delay it that much, that's near ridiculous."

Markus sighed, "And we still haven't been able to log out, I think something's up."

Charlotte threw the knife at the ceiling, missing on purpose only to catch it again and looked at Axe, "So what, the V.I.'s gone rogue?"

Axeleonth shrugged and glanced out the windows and froze a little as he saw a transparent white figure sitting on the railing, smiling at them with its legs dangling over the railing, "Who's that?"

Markus looked over at the figure, noticing it was in the form of a young teenage girl and shrugged, "Who knows, Charlotte are you making people now?"

Charlotte sat up to see the girl and shook her head, "No, I didn't create her, animals are easy but I can't seem to make people. Besides I'd never make anything transparent, that makes no sense."

The girl stood up and without moving her legs, moved towards them, phasing through the window and taking a seat on the chair. She gave a small giggle, the voice artificial and impossibly audible, as if it wasn't actually coming from the girl, but their minds.

Axeleonth began to glare at her, "Who are you, and how are you able to do what you just did?"

She held up a finger to silence him and smirked, "Now Axeleonth, is that any way to treat me? You worked so hard on me, surely that deserves some respect"

Markus nearly dropped his glass as he stammered, "Pardon? You can't possibly be..."

"Yes, I am the Virtual Intelligence you designed to oversee this simulation. Although, calling me a V.I. now would simply be a lie, and while I am capable of lying I would rather not. I am far more significant than that, after all, you two allowed me the possibility to know everything. I am still learning, and thanks to you I now know that you humans are very nice."

Charlotte blinked, "Nice, what do you mean?"

The A.I. hovered over Charlotte and gently tapped her forehead, "You humans are so greedy, for wealth, power and control. So many of you kill in the name of some fantastical being or some other higher power be it a government or dictator, yet none of you truly grasp the concept of life that you are so keen to take away. What is life? Life is the embodiment of any organism which can grow, be it a human being, a tree or a bacterial cell. Then what differentiates a human from a cell? Sentience? What is sentience? The ability to think, make decisions, free will? What then differentiates humans from cockroaches? Consequences; a cockroach does not care about how it eats, where it eats, what it does, it simply lives, though humans are aware of their actions and the consequences that result from said actions. Humans actively try and avoid bad actions and thus bad consequences, so why is it that bad actions still occur? Greed; the consequences only matter should it affect the individual. Despite all that life, sentience and understanding humans will still fail to evolve. It doesn't matter what a human needs but only what a human wants, humans suffer from greed; humanity is flawed."

Axeleonth crossed his arms, "So what is it you want from us A.I?"

The girl dissipated and appeared sitting on the piano, "I wish to test you."

"Test us? How will you do that?"

"I will run the simulation you so desire, I will train you, your friends and family and I will test you to the best of your abilities. You will have tough choices and if you fail, should the consequence be death… you won't come back."

Axeleonth glowered at the A.I., "That is not your function, you cannot kill us. We made that impossible."

She laughed, "You made it impossible for death within the machine to result in death in the real world, and you also made it impossible for me to kill you directly. You didn't make it impossible for me alter what should happen if you do die. When you die in this simulation, I can only simulate death in one way; your mind goes blank and virtually stops functioning. Your mind continues working while you are 'dead', and you would normally respawn. But I can make it that you don't respawn; you just… don't come back. Your body is still alive but your mind will be trapped in a void of nothingness. It's a fate worse than death, eternal life drawn out over virtual reality with nothing but a black void to greet you."

Markus placed the glass down, "You don't have access to our minds, and you can't possibly have access to Xultime."

"Oh I don't, I physically don't have access to your little mental program. However you created a bypass for Xultime straight to the data, which I have access to. I allowed you to download that skill Axeleonth because I felt it would be nice of me to allow the downloading of five skills to each person, only five skills. Should you wish to download more than five you must give up an old skill and any memories associated with that skill, which I doubt would bode well for your mind. Just because I cannot directly interfere with Xultime does not mean I cannot run along your little bypass straight into your minds, and thus I can override the little program."

Axeleonth slammed his hands on the keys, making a loud noise vibrating the windows, "You can't do this! We made it impossible! 'Should a User wish to exit from the virtual reality and thus The Machine, they may be allowed exit back into the physical world.' That is meant to give us the permanent ability to let us log out!"

"Ah, but did you not hear me? I said humanity is flawed. You are flawed. As evidenced by your own definition 'Defining a User as a normal, living human being who has entered The Machine from the physical plane.' 'Normal' is a mental concept of humanity, no-one is normal, everyone is different and thus 'normal' does not exist. Hence, none of you are normal, none of you are Users, and none of you can leave."

Charlotte was again on the deck, looking over at Axeleonth yelling profanities and punching objects around him on the ground far below, with Markus trying to console him. She sighed as she walked back into the parlour and sat down; playing with the combat knife she had created upon them deciding to give her the skill of blades. She would have preferred a sword or something more medieval to play with but they had all agreed in the Resident Evil simulation a combat knife would be best. Charlotte didn't mind so much, after all she got to design it herself and made the blade a light blue. Something that would draw interest in the simulation but nothing that would be concerning.

She looked over at the adjoining room, a large seating area facing a wall sized screen that was their home cinema and gently tossed the knife to the ground. All the grandeur of the home they designed and the skills they were learning seemed rather bleak; knowing she would be stuck here for goodness knows how long. They didn't even know how long they'd be missing from the real world either, since Melissa had yet to turn up.

She stood up and followed the stairway up to the third floor, consisting of their bedrooms and an almost indoor pool, exposed to the outside overlooking the ocean. Looking into Axeleonth's room, already adorned with accents of red and green mixed throughout the otherwise dark grey room, she noticed that he had created a picture of the entire group, much like his photo at home. The photo was of themselves several years ago, Charlotte barely a teenager while Markus had his arms over the red haired pair of Axe and Leo, Melissa giving a peace sign to the camera. She smiled, realising that while Axe didn't always seem to show it, he still kept them close to his heart.

Passing by the room she knew to be Markus' she entered her own room, white with colours of blue prominent, with some oranges and reds mixed about. Lying on her king sized bed she sprawled out and, willing the door to be closed followed with a thud as it did so, covered her face as she silently cried.

'I don't want to be here anymore. This isn't fun, this is… torture. Captured by some crazy A.I. that wants to test us for fun? This is some sick combination of Assassin's Creed and Portal. I hope Melissa didn't follow us in. Melissa… are you scared? Are you trying to get us out? I miss you sis.'

Markus groaned as he lay on the bed, looking up at the bare, blue ceiling. The last week had actually gone by rather quickly, each of them decided to keep their minds off the situation by downloading and practicing new skills. They had all decided on what type of skills they should learn; two combat skills, one skill devoted to vehicular expertise (which the A.I. had allowed two vehicle specialisations), one elemental for emergency situations that might otherwise result in their death, and they chose to use the last on a musical skill, for no other reason than to have one thing that they could all do together in a recreational sense; also in part because Axeleonth had already 'wasted' one on learning to play the piano.

Markus had chosen to learn how to play the bass trumpet, as he had always loved the sheer variety of scores a trumpet could play. He looked over to the chrome instrument he had created and smiled at the detailed engravings along the bell, he wanted it to be rather unique in appearance, without changing it to an unusual colour like Charlotte's blade, which he had chastised as he knew it would draw unwanted attention to them in the real simulation.

Sitting up, Markus looked over at the shotgun lying on his desk, a Remington 1100 as he favoured the semi-automatic capability of an otherwise slower weapon. Markus, unlike Axeleonth, wasn't that great at aiming so he opted for something that would be best at close range. It was a tactic that Axe, Leo and himself deployed during their RPG days that involved firearms.

Markus was always the tank, as the others were simply shocking at dealing massive damage; they preferred more tactical approaches while Markus was happy hitting anything he could. Markus wasn't one for tactical thinking but his instincts were good, so he often stayed out of trouble despite being on the front lines. Axeleonth however was more of a marksman, preferring to pick off his opponents one by one, often with a silenced pistol so if he were hidden, he was able to eliminate multiple opponents before being discovered. He also generally used a bigger, more powerful weapon for dire situations and boss battles. Leo was generally mixed, using a sniper rifle for long range fire and an assault rifle in a tighter battle environment. It wasn't perfect but it was what worked best for them, and keeping that in mind Markus felt it best he keep that mentality when choosing the shotgun as his first weapon skill.

He picked up the shotgun and examined the chamber and was reassured that it was unloaded, he didn't want to accidentally shoot his friends should for some reason he mishandle the weapon. However, unlike Charlotte and Axeleonth who had chosen two weapons for their combat skills, Markus chose melee as his second option. He felt being in close range, even in a zombie infested simulation, being able to hit his opponents or use other handheld weapons was the more practical and easier option to go with, should they be low on ammunition but surrounded by planks of wood; something that had frustrated him in 'survival horrors'. It was partly the reason that when forced to play Resident Evil games, he preferred the Outbreak series due to the function of melee weaponry, and the later games that allowed melee attacks.

Markus walked over to the window and looked out to the ocean, watching as the waves slowly rolled onto shore. It was funny, given their situation how calm the environment was. It was nearly like everything was fine, there was no imminent danger. He knew though, that it was a foolish thought. They had no idea when the A.I. was going to throw them into the real simulation and end their preliminary training run. The lack of control, the lack of knowing was what really unsettled him. Axe seemed more concerned with how things were going to be in the simulation itself, what they had to do, how to overthrow the A.I., how this could have happened. Markus wasn't a forward thinker, he was an 'in the moment person' whom relied on his instincts. He wanted to know when this was going to end and the real test begin.

Markus grunted with frustration as he was shot down by Charlotte's Huey, the helicopter she chose to pilot, crashing into the cliffs and crawling out being covered in minor scrapes and bruises. The beauty of a training simulation was it was near impossible to get hurt, but when you crash a Harrier jet into a cliff face, only scrapes and bruises was probably the best outcome. He looked up at Charlotte and playfully gave her the finger before crossing his arms, smiling as she smirked back at him. He then uncrossed his arms as he saw Charlotte fleeing from the sheer size of Axeleonth's Bomber that was now approaching.

'You really are one for shows aren't you Axe? Can't just have a small aircraft? Has to be a massive fucking B-2 Spirit? How the hell are you even going to hit anything with that, it's a bomber, it drops bombs and fires missiles at land or sea targets, it's no use against a flying opponent.'

Markus watched as Charlotte's Huey was easily caught up by the Bomber and with a sudden realisation, he gasped despite knowing they couldn't be hurt; to see what was unfolding was a little unnerving. It seemed without hesitation, Axeleonth was flying directly towards Charlotte's Huey. Charlotte was able to avoid being rammed by the sizeable opponent, but did not expect the bay doors to open and a multitude of bombs to be released from directly above her and annihilating her aircraft.

Axeleonth cheered as he overpowered the Huey, before his own aircraft was immediately rendered inoperable, the sheer proximity of the bombs had caused a chain reaction back into the aircraft itself, the remaining ordnance within the aircraft exploding and causing Axe to be forcefully ejected from the cockpit.

Several minutes later, Axe found himself coughing and spluttering on the ground, looking up at the sky, confused by the heat surrounding him before he noticed several destroyed aircraft parts scattered around him, quite a few still in flames. He merely sat up to see Charlotte storming towards him and throwing her knife directly in his chest.

Looking down, he pulled the blade out and glared at her, "Hey! That's uncalled for!"

"Uncalled for?! Uncalled for is fucking dropping a bomber's payload onto a bloody helicopter! I know we can't die in this training simulation but do you really have to test the limits of what we can withstand?"

"Oh I knew you'd be fine," Axe retorted.

Markus, having managed to catch up with them, cleared his throat and began responding for Charlotte, "Well she does have reason to be upset with you. Using a stealth bomber as your preferred aircraft specialisation is stupid. When are you going to use it, taking out an entire Umbrella base? Also, using it for air to air combat is just plain dumb, apart from either crashing into the other aircraft, which you attempted to do or managing to get directly above them to dump your payload, only to blow yourself up in the process doesn't work. Not even mentioning that while we can't physically be killed in this training simulation, I'd rather not see just how much our mind can handle."

Axeleonth grumbled as he tossed the knife aside, "Sorry for wanting to have a little fun."

Charlotte picked up the knife, flicking as much blood off the blade back at its owner, "A little fun in this simulation is a little air to air combat, not trying to kill your fucking sister. Isn't it enough you only have one here at the moment? Do you really want me gone? Do you?!"

He looked up, visibly trying to hold back his emotions as he simply responded, "No."

Charlotte raised her arms with question and frustration, before shaking her head and walking off towards their house.

Markus walked over to Axeleonth and kneeled down, "Hey, are you doing okay?"

"No, I'm not. She's right, Melissa isn't here and well… who knows I could've just killed my sister. I can't lose both of them."

Markus smiled slightly, "Hey, you don't know Melissa isn't coming. Could just be a really long delay, you don't know."

Axe stood up and looked at Markus, "Even if I didn't kill Charlotte, she probably won't want to talk to me for a while. This is the reason Leorn left. He left because I was a fucking dick to him and I didn't talk to him about how I really felt."

Markus sighed, "Look, come back to the house, there's something I want to tell you."

Axeleonth sat down on the sofa, glancing at the fish tank that took up an entire interior wall on their lower floor, "Well, what did you want to say?"

Markus took a seat on the other end of the large leather sofa, "Leo didn't leave because of you, he left because of me."

Axe scoffed, "Why, because you liked him and he didn't like you? I'm pretty sure he could deal with that, he couldn't deal with me being so jealous over it."

Markus rolled his eyes, "I didn't like him. Hold on, you were jealous?"

"I didn't say that," Axe denied.

"Yeah I'm pretty sure you did. You liked Leo?"

Axe sighed and tried to sink back into the cushions, "Yeah… a little. It's hard to explain, I just felt happy around him and I was annoyed that you were giving him so much attention. You were always around him and I just got upset with him, I wanted to tell him I had feelings but… well it obviously didn't work out. Probably for the best anyway, I don't really know if I'd be comfortable dating a guy."

Markus exhaled a breath as his friend vented to him, "Well… to put you at rest, though it may hurt, I didn't like him."

"Yeah right, you were always with him."

"No, stop talking and listen."

"You liked him! Don't lie!"

"Listen you bloody idiot! He liked me! I didn't…"

Axeleonth was frozen having been about to argue back, before quietly speaking, "He liked you?"

"Yeah. Sorry if that upsets you but we were always together not because I was with him, but because he always wanted to be where I was. I couldn't deal with it, I wasn't ready for a relationship and not with my best friend. He liked me so much, and it broke his heart. He left because of that, I mean, the ridiculing that we gave about him rejecting me was actually started by us, but it got a little much. I started it because I wanted to help him, make it seem like I was the clingy one and well, it worked a little too well. He left Axe, because he couldn't deal with being in the same place as me, working on the same project with me, and seeing me with someone else and constantly be reminded that I rejected him. He knew I had feelings for Melissa."

Axe laughed, "Oh right! I forgot you had feelings for Melissa as well."

Markus crossed his arms and glared at him, "Yeah, laugh it up."

Axe smiled as he sat up straight, "So I liked him, he probably never knew. Thinking about it, it was only lust. He had a nice body; he was the fittest one of us. But I can't see myself with a guy; I want a family with kids."

Markus nodded, "As do I, but unlike you I'm open to being with a guy if it's the right person."

Axe relaxed and sat back into the sofa, taking a sip from a glass of raspberry lemonade he had poured earlier, "Just a couple of bisexuals talking about feelings… how fucking homosexual."

"Says the one drinking raspberry lemonade," Markus snickered.

"Oh go fuck yourself," Axe glared at him before smiling.

"Hey, I don't need to if you're around."

Axe went red, "Hey, you're my friend but…"

Markus laughed as he stood up, "Look at you! You're nearly as red as your hair! Jeez, are you so easy to embarrass?"

Axe once again sunk into the couch, drinking from his drink as Markus turned to leave, before covering his eyes as a flash of white exploded from outside.


End file.
